Dreams of Another Life
by ChloChlo1989
Summary: What if dreams were more than just subconscious invention? What if they were memories of another life, or perhaps ones you had simply forgotten you had? *Complete*
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

 **This story is slight AU, with the ages of Kylo and Rey being 26 and 24, but the events of the films are still exactly the same.**

 **I am so glad that this story is finally up, I worked so hard on it!**

 **This chapter is a prologue recapping the events of TLJ, so feel free to skip this if you want to get straight to the story, but I thought that this would help you see what Kylo was thinking at certain parts of the movie, in the context of this story, of course.**

 **Enjoy! Please review, I love hearing your thoughts, comments and feelings about it!**

* * *

Kylo could not explain it. He was Snoke's apprentice. Now, he is the Supreme Leader. Yet, despite the hatred he feels towards his family, and the Jedi, his darkness did not engulf him enough to be capable of being angry at her.

They had fought numerous times, attempted to harm each other. She had succeeded at that, leaving him with a scar from his face, down to his collar bone. He should have felt anger, yet all he had felt was shock and admiration that this individual could over power him, despite being far less experienced and younger than himself.

Despite the anger he felt towards the world around him, and everyone it contained, she was the exception. His actions, body and face may have portrayed anger, but his eyes gave him away. He always looked at her with a mixture of fascination, curiosity and admiration. It was subtle, but did not go unnoticed.

He had tried to make himself stronger by destroying those that he felt had betrayed him. He had killed his father, yet he couldn't actually harm Rey. Her mere presence slowed the darkness from engulfing him. Yet, when he was sure he could end his mother, at Snoke's will, before he pressed the trigger, he thought of Rey. The anger and disgust she had looked at him with, after he had killed his father, made him halt. He couldn't bear to have her look at him like that again, yet he was unsure why.

She was the enemy, she had scarred him.

He had a job to do, yet he was thinking of her.

 _Why?_

As he felt his mother's presence through the force, he realised the answer to his own thoughts. Rey reminded him of his mother. Strong-willed, independent and caring.

The force bond with his mother strengthened as she realised that he was near, yet she didn't attempt to defend the bridge, nor attack the fighter ships that her son was leading. She was accepting her fate.

At this realisation, Kylo found himself unable to breathe, his throat tightening, as he fought back the tears that threatened to expose his weakness. He couldn't do it. Moving his thumb away from the trigger, he instead watched as the other fighter ships fired upon the bridge of the rebel ship.

* * *

 _Several days later_

As Kylo stood, staring out of an observation window, he was reflecting on the events that had transpired. The mere existence of Rey was exposing his inner turmoil and weakness. It would be a lie for him to deny that this Jakku scavenger's power over him did not scare him. He barely knew her, only having accessed her memories through using the force on her mind.

That was when the telepathic visions started.

His first instinct had been to suppress his weakness, and attempt to force her to reveal Skywalker's location to allow him to get his much needed revenge.

Yet it hadn't worked. She simply stood there, and he couldn't help but think how beautiful she looked when she was confident and angry.

Drawing his hand away, and surpressing his embarrassment at yet another failure, his curiosity got the better of him.

 _Just you_. His words had echoed through the vision. Despite her strength, her gaze flickered away from him, before returning. Her eyes and expression subtly softening slightly, before her strength had willed her anger to return.

He was unsure as to what could be causing the vision, they both were, as they had been on Starkiller Base when the ground had cracked between them, separating them.

* * *

As his scar was being tended to, he saw her again.

Upon seeing that he was shirtless, the scar she had inflicted upon him entirely visible, Rey was immediately shocked, trying to control her gaze to look at anything but him. He looked vulnerable, he knew that, but seeing her shyness, her had to suppress a smirk.

* * *

 _You're a monster_ , she had said.

 _Yes, I am_.

Upon his acceptance, she struggled to hide her shock and disbelief that she felt from reaching her face. She believed that she could turn him, that some light still resided within him, despite all of his previous monstrous acts that said otherwise.

* * *

Then, as they spoke, while Rey was in her hut on Ahch-To, they were both completely vulnerable and exposed. As they reached towards each other, both were equally nervous. They were enemies, after all.

As soon as they fingertips touched, both gasped. Despite being in a telepathic vision, they could feel each other, the act causing a buzz to run up their arms. As they sat there, they were both enraptured by the visions that they saw of the other.

Immediately upon feeling Skywalker's presence through the force, the connection between them was cut off. The feeling of his presence leaving Kylo feeling unsettled, as his hatred and feelings of betrayal bubbled to the surface.

* * *

When she arrived on to their First Order ship, he felt her presence through the force immediately, suppressing his shock and somewhat eagerness at the prospect of seeing her in person again, after several telepathic visions. Upon seeing each other, he kept his face serious, as his position as the Supreme Leader's apprentice required, while hers held apprehension, with a hint of a smile gracing her lips.

 _Ben_.

As she said his birth name, it caused his serious demeanour to crack slightly, causing his eyes to move her, from the spot on the wall that they had been focused on.

 _Ben Solo is dead_ , he had willed inside himself, but as she used his name and spoke to him softly, coming closer, her eyes flickering towards his lips in a moment of complete vulnerability, he found his belief beginning to falter, as he could not help but search her eyes, before looking at her lips too.

Her confidence never faltered, not even when she stood before Snoke, in his throne room. Not even as he invaded her mind. When Kylo had done that, he had done so with minimal pain, but as Snoke did the same, he did so brutally, without restrain. As Rey let out a horrific scream, Kylo had to force his eyes shut to will the sound away.

Snoke had influenced him to kill his father, to attempt to kill his mother, but he could not let Rey be killed.

It had taken every ounce of his concentration to trick Snoke in to thinking his mind and soul was solely dedicated to him, as Kylo activated the lightsaber, causing it to buzz to life and end Snoke.

As the Praetorian guards stood in shock, Kylo brought the Skywalker lightsaber towards Rey. Her face and her eyes said everything. _Surprise, pride and hope_. The next few moments consisted of the blur of battle, during which both himself and Rey seemed to work together naturally, having unswaying trust in one another. As they stood back to back, she defended him as a guard in his peripheral vision attacked. In turn, as she placed a hand on his thigh, he leaned forward to support her weight on his back, as she kicked the attacking guards away, while he used the force to push the guards attacking her backwards.

But all good things must come to an end.

 _You are nothing_ , he had said. _But not to me_.

All he wanted was for her to take his hand, accepting him for him. Show him that she felt the same about him. He had been abandoned by his parents, as they pursued their careers and busy lives. Skywalker had lost faith in him, had tried to kill him.

He just needed someone to believe in him, have faith in him, and not give up on him, but as she reached for Skywalker's lightsaber, Kylo broke. She was abandoning him as well. He followed her movements, their sheer power cracking the lightsaber in half, as the ground had on Starkiller Base.

She must have woken first, for when he did, Hux stood next to him shouting and demanding what had happened. Feeling the familiar stab of betrayal run through him, as he remembered the events that had taken place, he blamed it on her. He couldn't tell the truth, not now.

She had abandoned him, just as everyone else had done in his life. To make matters worse, she had even left him for dead. But as the heartbreaking heaviness of her betrayal threatened to consume him, he found himself wondering how his lightsaber had ended up back on his belt.

* * *

So now, here he was, kneeling down on the floor to retrieve a gold item that had caught his attention. It was his father's.

He felt her before he saw her. Moving his head up sharply, he met her eyes, both looking at each other simultaneously. As they held each other's gazes, her face hardened, leaving a blank expression.

Snoke had said that the force bond was his doing, that he had been controlling it. Snoke was now dead, but here she was, standing before him in yet another vision.

When she had abandoned him in the throne room, he had thought that it was all a lie. Everything she had said. The vision he had seen when he touched her. Whatever feelings she had clearly felt for him. All of it must have been lies.

Yet she stood before him.

Only then did he realise, this bond was theirs. He had no idea why the force had formed a bond between them, but it was never forced and it was never a lie. None of it was ever dishonest, only Snoke's claim that it was his doing.

As Kylo attempted to move towards her, she shut the door to what he presumed to be the Millennium Falcon. Upon the door's closure, their connection severed, and he could no longer feel her presence. She was in a world of light, surrounded by people, while he was left kneeling in the dark, all alone, with no one in the world left to care for him.

Looking down to his hand, he saw the gold chain fade, causing his hand to clench in to a fist. He stayed that way for several moments, before he rose and returned to the First Order. He was the Supreme Leader Ren now, he could not run away from his responsibilities, no matter how heavily they weighed him down.

He had lost the only light in his life, the only thing that was keeping the darkness from consuming him completely, the only person who cared about him. For some reason, Kylo couldn't help but feel as though he had felt this before, that he had lost her before. But that didn't make sense, because he hadn't met her before Takodana.

"Supreme Leader," Hux started, sarcasm subtly entwined in to his tone. "Nice of you to join us."


	2. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

 _As he lay on his cot in his tent, he stared at the ceiling. He was thinking of his family. His father was off somewhere, the smuggler he was. His mother being a senate, was busy working with the government. His uncle was busy being his Jedi master._

 _As he cycled through his family members, the loneliness that had sparked within him, engulfed him like fire to paper. He missed his family, but unfortunately for the twelve year old, he could not find any evidence that supported that his family shared the same feelings._

 _Hearing a commotion outside, among the other Jedi, his mind snapped harshly back to his present surroundings, causing him to rise in to a sitting position. With his face in his hand, he heard a young girl cry out, causing him to rise to his feet and leave the tent to satisfy his curiosity._

 _Pulling aside the thick, cloth material of his tent, he saw two other Padawan's crowding a young girl, at least a year younger than himself. From where he stood, he could see that the rest of the Jedi students were either in their tents or avoiding the commotion altogether, allowing their gazes to avoid the confrontation._

 _The older boy pulled the younger girl's hair, saying cruel remarks regarding her parent's abandoning her. Despite the Jedi way, bullying still occurred among them, as unlikely and illogical as it should be. He knew that first hand, as being the nephew of their shared master led to accusations of favouritism and jealously. Master Skywalker would banish such feelings, but until they reached a more mature age, these feelings would still be present, until they accepted the way of the Jedi and banished such feelings themselves._

 _Feeling furious that this poor girl was left to fend for herself against two cruel individuals, he burst forward and pushed them both away from her. He succeeded in pushing one to the floor, while the other just took a few steps back, a smirk on his face. Neither parties had followed the way of the Jedi, so an argument seemed futile, but the bullies stepped away and left the two._

 _As he turned to the young girl behind him, he saw tears in her eyes, but a fierce determination that stopped them from escaping. She looked about ten, but she was quite small and slim._

 _"Thank you," she whispered timidly, her arms wrapped around herself._

* * *

As Kylo opened his eyes, still cloudy with sleep, he recognised his surroundings as being his room, despite the darkness. It had been eight years since this room had become his own, after all.

Once he had risen in to a sitting position, he rubbed his eyes in an attempt to become more awake. Rising off the bed, he padded to the bathroom that was attached to his quarters. Once he had relieved himself, he washed his hands, splashing some cold water on his face. He leaned his weight on to his hands, which were on the edge of the sink, while staring at the water now dripping from his face. Looking up, he looked at his reflection. Although he was still slightly cloudy with sleep, his eyes didn't look tired. They looked the same as they had done after leaving Skywalker's temple, when the realisation of the events that had taken place, hit him at once.

 _Betrayal. Loneliness. Misery._

He always hated his eyes, for they were so expressive, that he believed them to be a weakness. He could not afford to be weak.

 _The Supreme Leader is never weak_ , he thought.

Padding back in to his sleeping area, he froze halfway through his path at the sound of someone crying.

Immediately, turning on the lights for his quarters, his eyes locked on her immediately. She was sitting in the corner, with her face buried in her hands, her shoulders shaking with the force of her sobs.

Still frozen where he was, Kylo was unsure of how to act, surely their encounter would still involve their unresolved anger from Snoke's throne room. Despite the fact that she had rejected him and attempted to use Skywalker's lightsaber against him, seeing her reduced to this state caused an ache deep within his chest.

He started to approach her slowly, with extreme caution, as though she was a creature in the wild that he feared would sprint away upon noticing his presence. Warily approaching her, Kylo kneeled down on to his knees, so that he was at the same level as her. Despite being directly in front of her, she had still not seemed to register his prescence.

Carefully, Kylo reached up his hands and wrapped them around her wrists gently, pulling them down to the space between them, moving to hold her hands. Her posture stiffened as soon as she felt the touch, but she allowed him to move her arms without restrain. Her eyes remained focused on her hands tears still streaming down her face, causing the ache in Kylo's chest to throb more intensely.

"Oh, Rey," he whispered, reaching up to wipe the tears from her left cheek. However, the action never came.

As soon as she heard his voice, she froze, the sobs halting. Her eyes slowly followed the hands holding her own, up the bare arms, to the bare chest. As soon as she saw the beginning of the scar at his collar bone, she swallowed harshly, visibly wincing. Following the scar, she reached his face and locked on to the brown eyes, filled with intense worry, that stared at her intensely. It only took a few moments for her to register that their force bond had formed another connection, before she ripped her hands away harshly. As soon as she rose her feet, she paced to the other side of the room, before she looked back towards his back. From his position on the floor, Kylo looked back at her and could see that she was clearly angry and embarrassed. Her fists were clenched at her sides, a blush covering her cheeks, while her eyes glared at him.

"Rey..." he started cautiously.

"No."

At her blunt reply, Kylo winced and turned away from her. She hadn't used that tone since their first connection, and he had definitely not missed it. He stayed kneeling where he was, facing away from her. He didn't want to argue, not when she was in this state, because it would only make things between them impossibly worse. They were both damaged. They had both had lonely childhoods, under different circumstances, of course, but he understood what she must have felt. His parents had been busy for the majority of his childhood, so he saw them very little, even more so when they had sent him to his uncle.

He understood her for who she was, and that scared him. He hadn't allowed himself to ever get that close to someone before. Being a Knight of Ren, didn't give him the opportunity to form friendships, nor did his time as a Padawan. He had never had a friend. The closest he had got to friendship was with Chewie, but he had seen him the same amount as he had his father, so it could never really be classed as a friendship.

In moments of immense weakness, he found himself craving for a friend, for someone to care about him and believe that he was worth something. He had thought that she would be that person, but he was wrong. She couldn't take his hand. She had rejected him, so why did he find himself caring so much?

As he turned to look at her again, he saw that she had calmed down. Her fists were unclenched, and her gaze was looking at his shoulder, rather than his face.

 _She wasn't prepared for me to stay silent, instead of arguing back_ , he realised.

Rising back to his feet, he took a step towards her, but seeing her eyes narrow, as they returned to his face, caused him to abort attempting a second. So he just stood there, staring at her intensely. She fidgeted momentarily beneath his gaze, but then decided to return it to the same intensity.

In the final moments of their connection, they remained that way, her eyes narrowing as they looked at him, as he stood before her in just pyjama trousers. Seeing the same look in his eyes that she had seen in the elevator, a look of care and concern that he was trying his hardest to hide, her gaze softened slightly, before the connection severed.

As the familiar feeling of loneliness enveloped him again, he sighed as he looked at the floor. It was only a few moments before he decided to turn off the lights again and return to sleep.

He couldn't afford to think of her, for he feared the emotions it may provoke.


	3. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

 _Over the next few days, both he and the girl stayed together as much as they could, outside of training of course. They were both social outcasts from the rest of the Padawan's at Skywalker's temple, so it only made sense that they would become friends._

 _As they sat on the grass, outside of his tent, he asked her to turn around so that her back was to him. Suddenly apprehensive, she stiffened slightly, before his soft smile calmed her down. As she faced away from him. He grabbed some hair accessories he had managed to find._

 _"This will stop them from being able to pull your hair so easily," he spoke, as he styled her hair as well as he could for a boy._

 _Upon finishing, she used her hand to feel his work, causing her facial expression to wrinkle slightly in amusement. It looked weird, but it was unique, three verticle buns down the centre of the back of her head._

 _"It's that or cut it all off," As soon as the words left his mouth, her face changed in to one of mild horror, before she saw his amused smile. Her features softened slightly before a slight smile made its way on to her face._

 _"Thank you," she whispered, opening her mouth to call him something but finding that did not yet know his name._

 _"Ben," he supplied, causing the smile on her face to widen ever so slightly._

 _"I'm Rey," she replied, causing his smile, in turn, to widen as well._

* * *

As Kylo sat up suddenly, his hand instinctively went to his head, where a throbbing headache had begun. Wincing, he swung his legs off the bed and placed his head in his hands, rubbing his temples in the hope of relieving the pain.

He had dreamt of her before, but never in this nature. This time it had felt so real. He remembered the Skywalker temple perfectly, down to the five human senses. The feel of the breeze, the smell of the surrounding nature, the sight of the sunset, the sound of the wildlife and the taste of the meals, which became more and more bland, as they remained the same throughout the many years of his childhood he spent there. Despite having been surrounded by other Padawans, he had always felt alone there. No one seemed to accept, or even understand, him, so he focused on the nature that surrounded the temple.

What he didn't understand was why he was imagining her there. He had never seen her, as a child, as they had first met on Takodana. The child version of her, that his mind had conjured in his dreams, looked exactly like her, even down to the most intricate details, such as the three bun hairstyle that she had donned when he first met her. She hadn't worn that hairstyle since Starkiller base, instead allowing half of her hair to flow down naturally. Personally, he preferred it that way, but he would never admit that.

Perhaps his mind was secretly wishing that they had met under such circumstances and had been able to be friends. She would have been his first true friend, the thought causing a small smile to emerge on his face, which was soon replaced by a frown.

 _They had never been friends_ , he thought, shaking his head as he rose from his bed. _It was just a dream._

To add to his confusion, he had thought he recognised one of the Padawans that had harassed her in the dream.

 _It had looked a lot like- no, it can't be_ , he shook his head again, removing the thought from his mind, before proceeding to dress.

* * *

"Supreme Leader," Hux ackonwledged out of obligation, a hint of distain in his tone. After the choking incident, Hux had toned down the sarcasm and disrespect, but it was still obviously there. However, being superior to him, in terms of rank, brought Kylo much satisfaction.

Kylo strode past him, without even an acknowledgement or a glance in his direction. Reaching the main observation window on the bridge of the ship, he stood confidently, with his arms behind his back.

He was the Supreme Leader now, he needed to act like one.

 _No room for weakness_ , he reinforced in his mind.

"I trust that we are headed to the location I specified," he spoke confidently, to no one in particular, the volume of his voice being high enough to be heard over the sounds of the bridge. From where he stood, still staring out of the window, he heard the entire room become silent for a few moments, as the individuals around him froze at their stations, processing his words.

"Yes, we are expected to arrive within the next hour," Hux answered, stepping towards him.

Kylo simply nodded in response, his attention still focused on the observation window. Hux simply huffed out a breath, before returning to his duties.

* * *

As Rey opened her eyes, she instantly winced upon feeling the ache in her head. Moving to the bathroom attached to her small room, she washed her face with cold water, before using her hand to cup some water and bring it to her mouth. After nineteen years on Jakku, cups and cutlery were a luxury.

Returning to her room, she began to dress. As she was wrapping her belt around her waist, she halted as she remembered the events of the previous night. He had seen her cry, had tried to comfort her. But he was the reason she was in this state to begin with. They had been so close to leaving the First Order together, but he had wanted to destroy both sides of the war, including all of the people who had been the first to care about her and believe in her. She couldn't do that to them. She cared about them too, and no matter how much she may care about Ben, she could not allow herself to be selfish.

Exiting her room, she followed the corridors of the Falcon until she reached the common area. All of the rebels were now on the Falcon, since they had no other transport ships or fighter ships, not after Crait. Due to the large amount of people, the sleeping quarters were shared and rotated between them, with some still having to sleep in the common area.

As she stepped in to the common area, stepping over some sleeping individuals in the process, making her way to the cockpit. Upon entering, Rose was using a welder to fix a side panel, sparks surrounding the tool. As soon as Rose saw her enter, she stopped and lifted the safety mask from her face.

"Shift change already?" She asked, somewhat surprised.

"Time must fly when you're having fun," Rey quipped, nodding her head in the direction of the welder still held in Rose's hand, earning her a small laugh.

"Couple of fuses went in the night, had to fix those," Rose explained. "The control panels had overridden the fuses, so we had a few small fires, hence the welding."

"You should get some sleep,"

"You're right, but,"

Rey reached out and slowly pried the welder from Rose's hand.

"Sleep," Rey ordered softly, a smile on her face for the maintenance worker's passion for her work.

Rose just nodded back, returning the smile, before she exited the cockpit and made her way to their shared quarters.

Approaching the duel pilot chairs, Rey immediately saw that Finn was fast asleep, causing her to release a sigh.

"He's been like that for the past hour," the voice causing Rey to move her attention to the other pilot.

"Hey, Poe,"

"Sleep okay, Rey?" She could sense the light care and concern in his voice. She had helped rescue them on Crait, her force-sensitivity giving the rebels hope that she could be their saviour. It put a lot of pressure on her shoulders, but the amount of care they had for her helped relieve the pressure slightly.

"Yeah, a decent amount," As she avoided his gaze, while she spoke, his eye brows furrowed, causing him to place a hand on her shoulder, making her tense.

"What's wrong?" he asked carefully. "Apart from the war, obviously."

Releasing a sigh, her posture softened again.

"There's just a lot of pressure on me," she started. "I've never had people care about me or rely on me before, it's unsettling."

A few moments of comfortable silence past, as he thought about her words.

"We all rely on each other," he began. "And we all care about each other."

He waited until she looked towards him before continuing.

"We're all here for you too, don't forget that."

Returning his smile, she placed her hand over his, on her shoulder, patting it twice before he removed it.

"So, where are we now?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He quipped, a smirk on his face. She laughed, rolling her eyes at his cheekiness.

He shot her a wink, before actually answering her question.


	4. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

"We have arrived, Supreme Leader."

He took a moment, taking in a deep breath.

"Good," he replied. "Prepare my ship." Before turning around and striding off of the bridge, towards the hangar bay.

As he strode through the corridors, stormtroopers and workers froze, saluting, before returning to their duties, while he did not even acknowledge their presence.

* * *

Upon reaching the hangar bay, his ship was fully prepared for him, so with ease, he entered and immediately occupied the cockpit.

Preparing and turning on the engine, he placed his gloved hands on the joystick, rising and guiding his ship out of the bay, and in to outer space, with ease. As a child, he found pleasure in learning to pilot ships, the ability coming to him naturally, a trait he had apparently inherited from his father. He had wanted to be a pilot, a fact that would always make itself known, whenever his mom asked him what he wanted to be when he was older, or when his father vaguely recounted his time away. However, upon realising he was force-sensitive, his parents disregarded his preferences for his life, choosing to send him to his uncle's temple at the age of ten. This caused him to begin to resent his parents, for they made decisions regarding his future, without even consulting him.

Approaching the nearby planet's atmosphere, he seamlessly guided his ship to the planet's surface. The individuals he sought had colonised this planet as their own base. It would not take long for him to find them, for the planet was quite small.

As he exited his ship, he placed his hand at his hip, upon his lightsaber. The planet was covered by jungle, with an oasis in the centre. The heat of the environment hit him immediately, but as he stalked through the jungle, the trees gave him shade, which was slightly cooler than being out in the open.

* * *

After he had trekked for a few hours, he reached the oasis at the centre, the cerulean lagoon and accompanying waterfall being so aesthetically pleasing, that he released a satisfied sigh. However, he refused to allow his feelings of contentment to show on his face.

By now they would know of his presence upon the planet, and be waiting for him.

Taking off his tunic and his boots, he swam through the lagoon, with long, broad strokes, he reached the waterfall, standing on the rocks beneath it, as the water ran down over him.

As he turned around, to allow it to run through his hair, he saw her sitting on one of the rocks of the lagoon.

"Rey?"

She was avoiding his gaze, a pink blush gracing her cheeks. As she spoke to someone next to her, he realised that she wasn't alone on her side of the connection.

He continued to run the water through his hair, before standing there, still shirtless, with water cascading down his body. The cold water from the waterfall helped ease the heat of the jungle that enveloped him, and was also a tradition before entering the cave that was hidden by the waterfall.

As he returned his attention back to her, she was still sitting in the exact same position, looking from someone next to her, to straight in front of her, stealing glances at him as subtly as she could.

Her reaction, and the fact that this wasn't the first time she had seen him shirtless, caused a smirk to emerge on his face, deepening her blush to a deeper shade of red once she noticed.

They remained that way for a few more moments, before his smirk changed to a look of contentment, causing her to stare at him intensely, with the same look she had in the lift to Snoke's throne room. This lasted for several more moments, before the connection ended.

He let out a sigh, looking from the rock she had been seated on, down to the rocks beneath his feet. Seeing her had caused him to forget where he was, and what his intentions were. Shaking his head, he removed the look of contentment, replacing it with a look of serious superiority, before turning and entering the cave opening.

It only took a few strides, before the cave opened up in to a large oval. Along the far wall, five silhouettes stood, hands clasped behind their backs, as they awaited his presence.

Once he reached the centre of the room, he nodded towards them, causing them to stride towards him, until they were a metre away.

"Master," they greeted together, bowing their heads in respect.

"Brothers," Kylo began. "It is time for you to join the war."

As Kylo's ship re-entered the hangar bay of the First Order ship, Hux was there to greet them.

"Supreme Leader," Hux began, nodding in his direction, his feelings of disdain and resentment seeping through, before he moved to nod towards the other five individuals.

"Knights of Ren, welcome."

* * *

As Kylo lay in his quarters, half a day later, he thought of Rey. He missed being able to be comfortable with her, and her with him, but at the same time, those feelings were met with betrayal and anger, due to her rejection.

Letting out a sigh of anguish, he crossed his arms over his chest, as he lay on his side, and allowed sleep to enveloped him, the dream he had the previous night decided to continue, but exhibited a clear time jump, as the two were now late in to their teens.

* * *

 _"I prefer your hair down."_

 _"You're the one who put it in to buns."_

 _"That was when you were being harassed," he replied. "But now you've got to be one of the scariest people in this temple."_

 _At this comment, she swiped his legs from beneath him with her staff._

 _"We are the scariest people in this temple."_

 _"Whatever you say, princess."_

 _"Please don't call me that."_

 _"Why not, princess?"_

 _"Because I'm not a damsel in distress."_

 _"No, I am by the looks of it."_

 _From where he lay on the ground, after her sly attack, she laughed. Reaching out with her hand to help him up, she regretted the action immediately, as he pulled her down to the grass beside him. Both laughed, before it died down in to soft smiles as they looked at one another._

 _They were best friends, and they cared about each other immensely._

 _At the clearing of their master's throat, they rose suddenly to their feet, taking on stances of respect and admiration. From where he stood, Master Skywalker looked at them with concern and apprehension. They were his most talented and resilient students, but he had never approved of their friendship, for both were so powerful that a collision together could be compared to a supernova._

 _"I wish to speak with Rey," their master spoke, his eyes moving from hers to his, in full seriousness. "Privately."_

 _"Yes, Master Skywalker," she replied confidently with a nod, before returning her attention to Ben beside her. "I'll see you later, please excuse me."_

 _The apprehension in her eyes was subtle, due to the extensive amusement and mischief that concealed it._

 _As soon as Master Skywalker turned away, beckoning Rey to follow, she followed him by stepping backwards, smirking at Ben. At his confused frown, her smirk evolved in to a grin, causing a smile to his own face. Her eyes flitted down before returning to his face, following her actions he looked down, but did not see anything out of order until he glimpsed a speck of dirt of his hip. Looking at her, he shook his head, a smirk gracing his lips. She had pushed him down on to an area of mud, having only just missed it herself, causing him to be standing there with a mud covered backside._

 _At her laugh, he couldn't help himself._

 _"Stop looking at my butt!" he all but mock squealed at her._

 _"I wouldn't dream of it." She shot back, a smirk on her face._

 _Shooting her a wink, she smiled and turned, running to catch up with Master Skywalker._

 _As he watched her leave, he let out a sigh._

 _"That girl is going to be the death of me."_


	5. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

 _As Rey followed Master Skywalker, he led them to a transported ship of similar size to the Falcon she had heard so much about from Ben._

 _As he motioned for her to step inside, she did so with mild apprehension._

 _"Where are we going, Master Skywalker?"_

 _He did not answer until the ship had left the atmosphere of the planet where his Jedi temple resided._

 _"We are going to keep the force balanced and stop the darkness from taking over our galaxy again."_

 _"What do you need me for?" She asked, her nervousness and apphrenesion clear in her voice._

 _He simply looked at her and raised his hand, and the next thing she knew was darkness._

 _In that darkness, Rey screamed for her parents on the somewhat large ship leaving Jakku's atmosphere, as a hand gripped her forearm, pulling her away harshly._

 _How could they leave her here at the age of five?_

* * *

As Rey bolted upright on her bunk, she placed a hand on her forehead and tried to control her breathing. She always encountered the memory of her parents leaving her, as she dreamt, but it had never changed in that way before. She had never been to his temple, or even met Luke before journeying to Ahch-To, only overheard stories of the Jedi and how he had helped save the galaxy, at the Niima outpost on Jakku.

 _It doesn't make any sense_ , she thought to herself, attempting to rub her temples in an attempt to relieve the sudden headache that had overtaken her.

As she felt a shift in the bed next to her, an arm came around her waist, causing her to tense instantly. Looking towards the being next to laying next to her sitting form, she recognised him immediately.

 _Ben._

At some point during sleep, they had connected in another vision. Problem was, Rey didn't know what to do. She was against the wall, so her only way to move away from him was to climb over him, which caused her face to heat up. The only other method was to wake him, but as she moved her hand towards his upper arm to shake him, she aborted the movement when she looked towards his face again.

 _He looks so peaceful_ , she thought. _It completely contrasts his nature._

Shaking her head, Rey decided to continue to try to wake him up.

Upon her hand making contact, he stiffened and recoiled immediately, falling off the narrow bunk in the process. Rey tried her best to hide her amusement, at the vulnerability this action showed.

He quickly rose to his feet, his fists clenched at his side, ready to defend himself. However, once he saw that it was her, his eyes widened slightly, his fists flexing in embarrassment.

"Sorry," she murmured sheepishly. "I, erm-"

"No, it's okay," He interrupted, looking from her, to the bed beneath her, and back again. "I can see why you had to do that."

They stared at each other intensely for a few more moments, before they both looked away simultaneously, their faces heating up at the realisation of the intimate nature of their connection in this instance.

"I had an unusual dream about you," he spoke suddenly, disturbing the silence that had surrounded them.

Seeing her eyes widen, and her blush deepen, he continued. "It was probably because of the connection."

He expected her to remain silent, until the end of the connection, that was how it usual went since the events of Crait.

"What happened in it?" She asked, turning her gaze away from him, to the corner of the room.

"You were at the Skywalker Jedi temple," he began. "And Skywalker-"

"Sent me to Jakku, and gave me false memories." She finished, causing his eyes to widen.

"So, we're having shared dreams." She continued.

As they continued to stare at each other, he cautiously came to sit next to her on the bed, causing her to stiffen slightly, but not entirely. She was sitting diagonally in the corner, between the head of the bed and the wall, with her legs drawn up to her chest, while he was sitting the side of the bed, his feet on the floor.

"Have you had any others?" He asked carefully.

"Dreams involving Luke?" He frowned at the use of his uncle's name.

"No," he continued. "Dreams related to me, us."

"No, I haven't." She answered, continuing when she saw the look of angst on his face. "Have you?"

He was silent for a few moments, debating whether or not he should be honest with her.

"Yes, I have."

As they remained silent, he listened to her steady breathing, closing his eyes, and attempting to match his own to hers.

"Can I ask what about?" She asked sheepishly, a blush still visible on her face.

"Erm, it's one continuous dream that has been continuing over the past few nights," He began, her eyes widening a little at the length he had been having them. "It involved us meeting as kids, and I gave you that bun hairstyle to stop people from pulling your hair."

Her eyebrows furrowed at this, causing him to pause.

"Rey?"

"That's similar to the vision I had when we touched hands, before Luke found us," Again, the use of his uncle's name caused him to frown. "Of two kids, who looked a lot like us, with the boy giving the girl a hairstyle similar to the one I had on Jakku."

"What had you thought it meant?" He asked cautiously, a frown still on his face. "Did you not presume it was us?"

"What makes you ask that?"

"Because you told me that you had a vision of our future, where you saw the light inside me."

She stayed silent for a few moments, before finally answering.

"I thought they were our children," she revealed, causing his eyes to widen and him to swallow harshly.

As he looked towards her, behind him, she refused to look at him.

"Rey," he began, reaching towards her slowly.

"No!" she shouted, jumping off of the bed and moving to the opposite side of the room.

"Rey," he said again, standing up and starting to approach her.

"No."

At her bluntness, he froze in his steps. A look of anguish overtook his feature before he could allow himself to stop it. He looked to the floor, before meeting her eyes.

"As you wish," he spoke softly, before nodding, as her shoulders began to relax.

They stared at each other for a few more moments, before the connection ended.


	6. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

 _As Master Skywalker returned to his temple, he felt guilt rise within him. He had taken Rey to Jakku, a far away, scavenging planet, with false memories, which would cause her to believe that she had been there since the age of five, due to being abandoned of her parents, with no knowledge of the force, only her hair style and her staff being the remaining aspects of her true childhood. With Rey being on a planet that Kylo would never have a reason to visit, their memories would be safely hidden within their minds. With no knowledge of each other, the force bond that they were already unaware of, would remain hibernated, and would only be awoken once they were physically reunited, which would allow their memories to return._

 _Luke had seen the friendship between his nephew and Rey grow, over the past six years. They were both powerful with the force, and together, they could be unstoppable. He could feel the shifts in the force with them, more so among Ben. With Rey being the only thing keeping him from falling to the dark side, Luke had seen that the light within Ben was weak, so he intended to remove them from one another, so that he could minimise the sheer power that caused the fear within him._

 _It was not the logical choice, but he was not certain that should Ben fall to the darkness, Rey would not follow him. They were so attached, that should both fall, they would be an unstoppable force that would rule the galaxy. He had seen, first hand, what that sheer amount of darkness could do to the world, at the will of his own father, Anakin. It had caused an uncontrollable fear within him, which had to be dealt with no matter the cost. Even though there was a high chance that Ben would fall to the darkness, it was safer than both of them falling together._

 _"I can't let the galaxy fall to the darkness again," Luke thought to himself, trying to will himself to finish what he had started, despite the risk it posed to his nephew. "We wouldn't survive against both of them."_

 _As he reached his nephew's tent, he stepped inside cautiously. As he lay in his cot, Luke could only whisper._

 _"I am sorry, Ben."_

 _Reaching out with a trembling hand, the force guided him in to his nephew's mind. He saw that his mind was consumed with darkness, with a simple ball of light floating amongst it._

 _Rey, the master had thought._

 _As he had done with Rey, earlier that day, he began to suppress the memories, replacing them with different ones, ones where Rey never existed to Ben. Before completion, his nephew stirred awake, Luke's mind returned to reality, only to find that his hand was holding his activated lightsaber. Upon viewing the ever-consuming darkness within his nephew, his first instinct had been to end the problem._

 _As the disgust and shame flowed through the Jedi Master, his nephew looked at him with shock._

 _"Where's Rey?" He asked, some of his most recent memories still accessible._

 _Luke stayed silent, and reached out to finish his work before Ben could stop him. For a moment, Ben looked as though he wanted to scream, before his face morphed in to betrayal._

 _Once the memory suppression and replacement was complete, Ben looked at his uncle who stood over him, with his lightsaber drawn. The betrayal on his face deepened in to anger, as he believed him to be attempting to kill him, an assumption that had been momentarily subconsciously true._

 _With his last speck of light removed, Ben's anger bubbled to the surface and exploded violently, leaving his uncle to climb out of a pile of rubble to the sight of his temple engulfed in flames._

* * *

Kylo bolted upright, from where he lay on his bed. He was panting, a sheer layer of sweat coating his skin. Clutching his chest, he attempted to slow his breathing, before the dull ache in his head began to throb intensely.

Letting out an anguished groan, he stumbled off the bed, towards the attached bathroom.

After splashing some cold water on his face, he chose to gulp down five consecutive mouthfuls of it. Sighing again, he looked up at his hands, to see them trembling as they gripped the side of the sink, causing it to vibrate up his arms and through his entire body.

He looked up towards the mirror, and the second he saw his eyes, the full force of the dream hit him.

 _It wasn't a dream_ , he thought. _It was a memory._

At the realisation, all of the memories, which he had thought were dreams, hit him, making themselves known in his brain. At the sudden rush of emotions, Kylo punched the mirror in front of him, causing blood to coat his knuckles, as shards of glass fell in to the sink in front of him.

Letting out a howl of anger, tears began to stream down his face.

 _She had been his best friend._

 _He had loved her._

 _He loved Rey._

* * *

"Supreme Leader," Hux greeted, as he entered the bridge.

At the observation window stood the six Knights of Ren, turning to face him as soon as he entered. Once he approached them, he looked at each of them in turn.

"You should be training," He started. "We are at war, brothers."

Nodding in his direction, they strode from the bridge, with the intention of going to the training room.

"Apart from you, Logan Ren," Kylo called out. "I wish to speak with you."

A single knight aborted his movements, as the other four continued without hesitation.

Turning and striding off of the bridge, Kylo beckoned him to follow with a gesture of his gloved hand.

"May I inquire as to what you wish to discuss, Master Ren?"

"Do you remember Skywalker's temple?"

Logan hesitated for a few seconds, his mind cycling through the memories.

"Somewhat," he answered, to which Kylo nodded.

"Do you remember a young Padawan called Rey?"

Logan froze his steps, standing there in shock, which Kylo surmised, due to the helmet covering his face.

After a few moments, Logan continued walking, before answering.

"I do not, Master Ren."

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Kylo stopped walking, but kept both his body and his face turned forwards.

"Do not lie to me, Logan." He said strictly.

"I am n-" His was speech was cut off, as Kylo used the force to lift his feet of the ground and choked him, in the middle of the corridor, causing several stormtroopers to retreat.

"Do not lie," Kylo spoke severely. "You bullied her when she was no more than ten."

Letting go, Logan collapsed against the wall, his knees nearly buckling beneath him.

"I presumed she was dead," he began. "You never spoke of her again, after the temple."

At Kylo's silence, he continued.

"I assumed that she did not wish to join us, there was too much light in her," He continued. "It was only logical to presume that you ended her, due to her disloyalty."

At the thought of himself being responsible for Rey's death, he pulled his lightsaber from his belt, activating it, causing it to buzz in the silence of the corridor. The red glow reflected on Logan's mask, as he instinctively attempted to grab his lightsaber. Kylo raised his arm, and brought the lightsaber across Logan's face, causing him to slump to the ground, the crevice in his helmet exposing the flesh beneath.

"If your master chooses execution, you take it with honour," Kylo spoke towards the corpse at his feet. "By attempting to fight back, you disrespect me, and the Knights of Ren."

As he continued down the corridor, he took one last look back at Logan.

 _For Rey._


	7. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

"Ben?"

She would have ignored him, but the fact that he had ignored her had made her feel uncomfortable. He was usually the one to initiate conversation, or at least acknowledge her existence.

When she had entered her quarters, after shift-change with Rose, she was alone in her quarters. She turned her attention to him sitting in a chair, facing the wall.

He completely ignored her, didn't even twitch, when she entered, despite the fact that he must have felt her presence through the force.

"Ben?" she repeated, causing him to turn sharply and face her.

The sight caused her to flinch. He looked at her as though he was looking right through her, his eyes brown, spheres of despair.

"Ben," she began apprehensively, swallowing harshly. "What's happened?"

"You don't remember," he croaked, causing her chest to ache at sheer amount of distress in his tone.

"Remember what?"

"Me."

She remained silent for a few moments, her eyebrows furrowing.

"What are you-" She trailed off, as he stood up sharply, the chair he was sitting on falling to the floor violently.

"The dreams!" As he raised his voice, Rey recoiled. "The dreams are real!"

"Ben, you're not making any sense."

"The dreams," he said it softer this time, looking at her with an intense care, that she didn't recognise. She knew he cared about her, but it had never been exposed as being as deep as it appeared now.

"They weren't dreams," he began, taking a step towards her, causing her to shake her head. "They were memories."

"That doesn't make sense," Rey replied, frowning. "I was on Jakku since I was five, until I left on the Falcon. If the dreams were true, we would've meant when I was ten. I was on Jakku for 19 years, Ben, there's no way."

"You need to remember!" He shouted, startling her, not because she saw anger, but because she could see the clear desperation in both, his tone and his face. As he took several strides towards her, she took a single one back, instinctively.

"Ben, what are you-" She attempted, as he grabbed her shoulder and pulled her towards him, placing his other hand on the side of her face, as he kissed her. She froze for a few seconds, before the gentleness of his touch on the side of her face caused her to relax in to it. However, the sweetness of his kiss was short-lived, as an intense throb developed in her head.

Pushing him away from her sharply, he stumbled a few steps backwards, as her eyes widened slightly and she gripped the sides of her head with her hands.

 _"Thank you,"_

 _"It's that or cut it all off,"_

 _"I'm Rey,"_

 _"I prefer your hair down."_

 _"Whatever you say, princess."_

 _"I wouldn't dream of it."_

 _"Stop looking at my butt!"_

 _"Where are we going, Master Skywalker?"_

She stood there panting for several minutes, her eyes staring at him in shock, before her hands rose up to cover the lower half of her face in horror.

"Rey..."

"No."

"Rey, please, let me-"

"No!"

She stumbled back, until her body hit the wall behind her, causing her to sink to her knees, as tears began streaming down her face.

It was nearly ten minutes of silence, before Rey spoke.

"I was on Jakku for eight years, not nineteen years." She said blankly. "I was abandoned when I was ten, not five. Luke found me, he sensed that I was force-sensitive, and he brought me to his temple. The others disliked me, and said cruel things, because I was practically an orphan."

"They're dead now," Kylo added, causing Rey to look up at him questioningly. "One was killed at the temple, when I destroyed it, the other I killed yesterday, after I got my memories back."

At her frown, he added the detail she was clearly confused about.

"He was a Knight of Ren."

"You were the only one who cared enough to stop them. You were my best friend." As she said the final words, she was reduced to sobs again, her hand once again coming up to cover the lower half of her face.

Without hesitation, Kylo strode towards her and collapsed to his knees, before pulling her to his chest. She resisted at first, but she soon relaxed in to his embrace.

"You were my best friend," she croaked, the pain in her tone causing the ache in his chest to deepen so intensely that he gasped, before he found himself sobbing too, clutching her tighter in his embrace.

He pulled back, but kept his arms around her, as he pressed his forehead against hers. As the sobs faded, they kept their eyes shut and focused on their breathing.

"I thought for all those years that I was waiting for my parents, for a family," opening her eyes, she looked up at him, as he copied her movements. "When I was actually waiting for you."

As another tear fell from his eyes, she reached up and wiped it away with her thumb, before caressing the side of his face with her hand.

"I thought I had never had a friend, never been loved," he whispered, bringing her head to his shoulder, stroking her hair. "But I had you."

She let out a sigh of contentment, her eyes shutting briefly.

They stayed that way for a few minutes, before she spoke.

He looked at her and for the first time, Rey saw an honest smile on his face, but it soon faded when he saw the sadness in her eyes.

"What do we do now, Ben?"

Closing his eyes again, he moved his hand from the back of her head, and embraced her tightly.

"I don't know," he spoke, his face turned in to her hair. "I honestly, don't know."


	8. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

"What is this force bond that we share?" She asked.

It was a few days after her memories had returned, and in another telepathic vision, she was pacing the lengths of his quarters, while he sat at his desk.

"I'm not sure," he replied. "I've never heard of one existing before."

"Wait," she ordered. "Maybe..."

She moved around what he presumed to be her own quarters, before retrieving an old book.

"Is that...?" He asked in anticipation.

"One of the Jedi texts?" She finished for him. "Yeah, it is."

After a few hours of reading through the book together, they managed to conclude the meaning of their bond.

"So," She started. "It's like Yin and Yang?"

"How do you know about that?"

"I haven't lived under a rock my entire life, Ben." She defended, causing him to smirk.

"An archaic saying," He quipped. "Perhaps you are becoming an elderly woman."

She hit his shoulder, as she paced behind his back, for which he mocked injury.

"You're such a baby."

"I'm older than you, princess."

This earned him a slap across the back of his head, at which he laughed. However, as it died down, her silence intrigued him, causing him to turn in his chair to see her frozen, staring at him.

"What?" He asked, a frown developing on his features.

"A few days ago, I wondered what it would be like to hear you laugh," she answered, sadness evident in her voice. "But I'd heard it nearly everyday for six years, without even knowing it."

"Hey, come here." He responded, opening his arms out to her from where he was seated.

She complied, without any hesitation, relaxing in his arms, as he pulled her to sit sideways on his lap. They had been the closest of friends for so many years of their childhood, it made them forget about the war around them, settling back in to their old habits.

"I'm here now," he said, causing her to look up from her hands to his face. "That's what matters."

After a few moments of silence, she continued with her previous topic.

"So, it's like Yin and Yang. Two contrasting forces, both of which are in possession of a small amount of the other."

"Yeah, Rey, it's a balance. So, the bond we share is an attempt to balance the force."

They remained silent for a few moments, thinking about their reading, before he continued.

"That's why the ground cracked between us, specifically, when we fought, not just a coincidence brought about by the planet's disintegration. And why the lightsaber cracked in half back on Starkiller base. It stops us from killing each other, as this would sever the bond, rendering the force imbalanced."

"What about the telepathic visions?"

"It said in the text that the bond transcends time and matter, hence the visions. They never taught us about such a bond during our Jedi training, probably due to its rarity, having not been recognised as existing for centuries."

"Luke recognised the bond on Ahch-To, when he saw our hands touch."

Kylo lifted a questioning eyebrow at that, a smirk on his face.

"So, that's where you were hiding."

That earned him another playful smack, this time to his bicep. Since their memories had returned, their old personalities and mannerisms had seeped through in to the present, and despite the war and conflict that surrounded them, they enjoyed it.

 _I had subconsciously missed her so much,_ he thought.

 _It explains why I was so drawn to her when we first met._

"I don't understand," She continued. "Why would he introduce me to the force, after taking all of my knowledge of it away?"

"Well, I assume he suppressed our memories expecting us to never see each other again, but by knowing that the bond had been reformed, after being surpressed all of those years, he must have wanted to fix his mistake." Kylo replied. "He saw what his actions made me do, and I presume after learning that I had killed Han, he decided that he needed to reverse what he did."

Rey just nodded slightly, before continuing on to a different topic.

"What are the Knights of Ren?"

"After I destroyed Lu- Skywalker's temple, the Knights of Ren were the other Padawans who chose to join me. I am the master of the Knights of Ren, as well as Supreme Leader."

Rey sent him a sad smile. They were so close, yet so far.

"They would not have been able to decipher the presence of the bond, from the presence of myself through the force, as they were never taught of its existence."

After a few more moments of contemplation, the silence was once again disturbed.

"Can we try something?" Rey suddenly said, sitting up straighter on his lap.

"What?"

Releasing a steady breath, Rey allowed the force to overtake her, using it to beckon the two halves of Luke's lightsaber towards her. This action caused Kylo to tense behind her, undoubtedly due to the fact that the last time she had taken such an action, he had believed her to be abandoning him and attempting to kill him, as Skywalker had done.

"Trust me, Ben," The use of his name causing him to look up towards her, as she took his hand and lifted it to hover in a similar way to hers. Understanding her meaning, he matched her action, taking one piece of the lightsaber in to his own control, while she maintained that other.

As they slowly edged the lightsaber pieces towards one another, there was a visible repulsion between the two, causing both, Rey and Kylo, to apply more of the force. Once there was merely an inch between the two pieces, the cracked crystal started to emit a soft, blue glow, which grew stronger with each millimetre that the distance decreased.

The instance the cracked sides of the crystal touched the other, the blue glow became so strong that it blinded both of them, causing the two of them to close their eyes, a look of contentment overtaking their features.

As the glow died down, they opened their eyes again, Luke's lightsaber falling in to Rey's lap. From where she sat, still in his lap, she took the lightsaber in her hand, turning it to analyse its surface.

Somehow the force bond had allowed them to reform Luke's lightsaber, from its two halves, only a slight scar stretching around its circumference, where it had been separated. She looked at Ben once, before turning her attention back to the lightsaber, activating it.

A soft blue glowed over the surroundings, the buzz of energy crackling in the silence, causing her to gasp.

"It's beautiful," She whispered to herself.

"Yeah," was his only response, causing her to turn to look at him, finding that he was not paying any attention to the weapon in her hand.

He was staring at her, a look of awe and admiration gracing his features, causing her to blush and return to the lightsaber.

They stayed like that for a few more minutes, before the connection ended. It was only once she was gone that he realised that this had been their longest telepathic vision.

"It's getting stronger," He said to himself, causing him to smile, as he thought about their bond.

A knock at the door of his quarters, startled Kylo. The First Order never disturbed him when he was in his quarters.

"You have been requested on the bridge, Supreme Leader Ren." He stated, before saluting again and leaving.

As Kylo walked on to the bridge, he was immediately acknowledged by Hux.

"Supreme Leader," he spoke, snidely. "We have obtained information regarding the location of what remains of the rebels."

 _Rey._

"Proceed," Kylo ordered, controlling his expression in to one of seriousness and confidence.

"They have been seen on Corellia."

Kylo recognised it immediately. It was the home world of his father, and known to show support to the resistance, along with starship production, which they undoubtedly needed, since they only had the Falcon now, after the battle on Crait.

 _The force loves its timing_ , he thought as she appeared in front of him.

She sent him a smile, before it faded at his lack of response, as she realised that he was not alone.

He turned his attention back to Hux, after taking a small glance at her in the process.

"So," he began, his eyes flitting in her direction, as though encouraging her to listen. "It is believed that the rebels are currently on Corellia, anticipating obtaining another starship to rebuild their forces."

As Hux nodded, and continued to explain the plan that they had formulated- Kylo zoned out. Turning to where Rey stood, he saw that she had paled, her eyes widened and her jaw clenched.

 _They are on Corellia,_ he thought.

"How long until we are expected to arrive?" he asked.

"From our current position, at lightspeed, we can be expected to arrive in three hours."

"Very well," he replied, nodding, his calm demeanour disturbing Hux. "In three hours, we will intercept and render the rebel scum to extinction."

As he looked back to her, he saw tears begin to form in her eyes. His words had sounded true, but his eyes were full of resignation and pure fear.

As the connection ended, she gave him a nod, before turning and running, no doubt to warn the other rebels that they needed to leave.

He stared at the spot where he had last seen her, and although the Supreme Leader should be immensely proud at the development in this war, all he could think about was his best friend.

 _I can't lose her again,_ he thought.

 _I won't._


	9. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

 _3 hours later_

As the First Order approached Corellia, three ships, including the Millennium Falcon left the planet's atmosphere. Seeing an attempted escape, at lightspeed, to be futile, the three starships halted.

The First Order ship was too large and powerful, to fight or even run away from. Not even their cruiser had been enough to escape it.

* * *

 _On the Millennium Falcon:_

"We can't just sit here and wait to be killed!" Poe shouted.

"The Millennium Falcon won't last five minutes against that ship!" Rose shouted.

"Oh great, I wake up from being unconscious, only to be killed like a month later. Wonderful." Finn commented to himself.

"We must have hope, it's all we can do. We go down fighting." Leia spoke, emitting confidence, with subtle apprehension.

While the rest of the rebels on the ship spoke in panic, Rey stood next to Chewbacca, who sat in his pilot chair. Staring out of the window, she felt Ben's presence, and she knew that there was only a small chance that the rebels could escape.

 _But at what cost_ , she thought, tears welling in her eyes.

 _We go down fighting, Leia had said, and that is what we will do._

* * *

 _On the First Order ship:_

Kylo stood with his hand in the air, the limb being the only thing stopping the weapons of his ship destroying that of Falcon, which carried his best friend, not to mention his mother, and the closest thing he had to a teddy bear.

Although Supreme Leader Ren appeared confident and superior, he was using as much control as he could muster to control the shudders of fear and heartbreak that coursed through him.

 _He had destroyed the Jedi temple, he had killed his father, but he had been unable to kill his mother._

 _Rey is on that ship._

Losing her in the first place had been the beginning of the chain of dark deeds he had conducted, until their bond reignited and made itself known by cracking the ground beneath them, so that they wouldn't harm one another, on D'Qar. Then, the visions had started. Then the lightsaber splitting on Starkiller base. Then, the dreams. Their memories. Their childhood. Their friendship. Their...love?

Kylo inhaled a shaky breath, before he lowered his hand, abandoning the launch of their weapons. A tightening of his hand in to his first, before lowering it, would have initiated the battle, but instead the bridge remained silent, still and confused at their Supreme Leader's actions.

Unfortunately, it was this action that finally broke Hux.

"What the hell are you doing?" he demanded to know. "If we fire now, we will never have to be worried about the rebels again."

"I command all weapons to be disabled." He ordered. "Do not fire upon those starships."

Hux stood in shock, while the rest of the bridge slowly abided by his orders, their confusion evident. However, they had seen how he reacted when he didn't get his way, proven by the multiple wary glances that were thrown in the direction of his lightsaber on his belt.

Kylo then suddenly turned and strode back off of the bridge, while Hux followed closely behind. For the next few minutes, Kylo ignored the curses, demands and angry statements that flowed out of Hux, until he caught Kylo's attention.

"This is because of the girl isn't it," He asked snidely. "I know she's on that antique starship. Like it or not, in the next fifteen minutes, she'll be dead and there'll be nothing left of her to be se-"

He was cut off, as Kylo force choked him, as he had done on Crait, but this time the sheer anger in Kylo's eyes was not merciful or pitiful, it was deadly. As Hux gasped for breath, and his face began to become purple, Kylo remained unforgiving.

As Kylo ran towards the hangar bay, all that was left of Hux was a pulse-less body, lying in a heap on the floor.

Once he reached the hangar bay, he ungracefully prepared his ship himself, before guiding it towards the exit. It would take another seven minutes from now for them to enable their entire weapons system again and lock on to the starships.

 _That's more than enough time_ , Kylo thought.

As he exited the hangar bay, he felt the presence of his Knights of Ren through the force.

 _I need to hurry before they follow._

* * *

 _On the Millennium Falcon:_

"One of their fighter ships is leaving the hangar bay and coming in our direction!" Poe shouted.

"I've got the guns ready!" Finn shouted.

As Leia attempted to reach Poe, she froze, staring intensely at the First Order fighter ship with resignation and acceptance.

 _She can feel him_ , Rey thought.

"I'm locked on and ready to-!"

"Wait!" Rey shouted suddenly. "Don't shoot!"

The whole of the Falcon's occupants went quiet, shooting her looks of confusion and some that suggested she must have gone insane.

"Ben's on that ship."

"Rey, he's the Supreme Leader," Poe spoke. "He tried to kill us all on Crait, and he's going to do the same now."

"He won't!"

"Come on, Rey." Finn shouted. "How do you even know it's him on there?"

"Things have changed, he's changed." She pleaded. "Just don't shoot."

Leia looked at her with curiosity and wonder, but this was not the time to press for an explanation, as Poe all but squeaked from shock. Turning to where he in the other pilot's chair, his jaw was nearly touching the floor.

"Oh my..." Finn said with a mix of wonder, shock and confusion.

As Rey looked out of the cockpit window, she saw that Ben's fighter ship was no longer directed at the Falcon, but rather at the bridge of the First Order ship, unloading its weaponry at the workers on the bridge and the equipment. Unlike when he aimed at the rebel cruiser, he did not hesitate this time. Kylo's fighter ship was the best of all of the First Order's fleet, as Snoke's apprentice, master of the Knights of Ren and then Supreme Leader had it's perks.

Once five minutes had passed, Kylo turned and made his way towards the Falcon. In two minutes, if their equipment had survived, their weapons would be locked on to them and ready to fire. Kylo simply decided that this was not the time to risk being optimistic.

"Regardless of what he just did, you can't be seriously letting him on board," Poe said to Leia, his annoyance clear in his tone.

"Regardless of your opinion, Dameron, that is my son," Leia spoke sternly. "And he may have just found us an escape."

As Poe, Finn, Rose, Chewbacca and Leia rushed to the ship that had just docked, they were not prepared for the sight that awaited them.

Poe had to be restrained by Finn, while Rose and Chewbacca looked on with awe, while Leia remained confident as ever, with a somewhat smug smile on her lips.

In front of them, Rey and Ben were embracing, arms wrapped tightly around one another, as he buried his face in her neck. Unmistakably, two matching grins took over their faces.

Hurridly, Ben separated from Rey, only to take her hand, and pull her towards the cockpit. Seeing the five individuals watching them intently, Rey blushed, while Ben gulped.

"No time," he said bluntly, pulling Rey with him as he ran around them, towards the cockpit.

"We need to get out of here in the thirty seconds," Ben shouted. "The weapons systems will be back online in that time."

"But you destroyed the bridge," Poe replied, somewhat sarcastic.

"Do you really want to take the chance?" Ben replied matter-of-factly. "Can you do it or not?"

At this attempt at a challenge, Poe huffed, sitting down in the chair, while Chewbacca came to join him. He took one glance at Ben, but this was not the time for that conversation, instead choosing a quick right hook aimed at Ben's jaw.

As the wookie sat down in the other pilot seat, Ben rubbed his jaw.

"Fair enough," He muttered to himself. "I deserved that."

Meanwhile, Poe gave the other two starships the order, and with four seconds to spare, the three starships were at lightspeed.


	10. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

 _Twenty minutes later_

Sitting in the common area of the Falcon, Ben and Rey sat together. After he had explained exactly what he had done, Rey had tried to persuade him to turn to the light, to join them.

"Think of the dark side as fire, Rey," He began. "It starts off as a spark, and gradually it becomes bigger and bigger, until it's like...it's like an erupting volcano, lava flowing, killing and irreparable damaging everything it touches. Then there's the light, which is basically cool water. In the beginnings of the fire, it can put it out, but unless it is in infinite amounts, it cannot stop the lava."

He looked at her a moment, before continuing.

"Even you have some darkness in you, Rey." As she opened her mouth to deny it, he brought his hand up to caress the side of her face, before continuing. "It's not enough to turn you, but it's enough to balance you."

"I can balance you," she responded, causing him to smile, using his finger to tilt her chin up so that she would meet his gaze.

"I was hoping you would say that," he stated, before capturing her lips with his own.

She remained shocked for a few seconds, before she returned it. It felt natural. It felt effortless.

Breaking apart, they rested their foreheads together, eyes closed, basking in the moment.

"I had wanted to do that the day you were taken away from me," Ben spoke, mild anger evident in his tone. With Skywalker gone, his anger had no fuel to ignite it further.

"I wouldn't have complained," Rey replied, a smirk on her lips and a faint blush on her face.

After a few moments of content silence, Ben spoke.

"I'm not going to turn, Rey."

"I know," she replied, leaning back to look at his face, a look of determination on her own. "Neither am I."

"Balance?" He asked, a look of apprehension on his face.

"Balance."

Her confirmation, brought a smile to his face. He wouldn't turn, but she was accepting him as he was. He was filled with darkness, a darkness that threaten to engulf him. She was the light that held it at bay, and with their ever-growing feelings for each other, the light got stronger. Not strong enough to turn him towards the light, but strong enough to keep him further from complete darkness.

As they hugged each other, a cough from the doorway was heard, causing them to startle and spring apart.

"Calm down, children," Leia spoke, a smug smile on her face. "Save the public displays of affection for after."

As she approached the table, Ben stiffened, his gaze avoiding her entire general direction, until she sat down opposite him. Immediately, his eyes shot to hers, a blank look on his face, coupled with a few unnecessary gulps.

"Ben," she spoke, compassion in her tone. It had the opposite effect to when Rey spoke his birth name, it caused him to look away from her.

He had been the reason she had lost her brother, both in life and due to death. He had killed his father, her husband. He had nearly killed her. He had wanted to prove himself to Snoke, prove that he had worth, even though he felt worthless. That was what he had wanted all of his life. Someone to tell him that they needed him, that he meant something to someone- anyone. He hadn't gotten it from his father, he was off his home planet for majority of the time, Chewie along with him. Leia, his mother, had been working for much of the time, it was in her blood. Skywalker, his uncle, had been his master, the birth of new Jedi being his priority over family.

 _You're nothing, but not to me_ , his words to Rey echoing in his mind. All he had wanted was for her to express the same to him, to tell him that he meant something to her. Knowing now that they were best friends, during their childhood, and now more, he didn't feel worthless. At least not to Rey.

"Ben," Leia spoke sternly. "Look at me."

When his eyes snapped to hers, she softened, exhaling a relieving sigh, which seemed as though it had been held in from the moment he cut off all ties. There was a mixture of emotions in her eyes: anger, guilt, relief. She could see the same mixture of emotions in his.

"The past is in the past," She replied, reaching out across the table between them. "You're here now, that's what matters."

At sound of the same words he had offered to Rey, he reached out his own hand, and grasped his mother's hand for the first time in ten years, for he had been at the temple two years prior to Rey's arrival. He had been the same age as Rey when he felt as though his parents had abandoned him.

"They will catch up to us soon," Ben spoke, his voice faltering slightly. "Mother."

At the word, Leia's breath caught, her eyes widening slightly. She had missed her son so much over the past decade. They watched each other for a few moments, before Rey placed a reassuring hand on Ben's arm, causing him to look at her and receive a soft smile, before continuing.

"They have not pursued us immediately, as they no longer have a Supreme Leader, or a particular person that the position could fall to. I presume that one of the Knights of Ren will take my place as Master and assume the role of Supreme Leader."

"We are heading to a nearby uninhabited planet. We cannot take to force of this battle in the sky, not on these old ships." She patted the wall of the Falcon affectionately, before continuing. "There is a base on the planet, rebel or not, we will use to refresh our supplies and ammunition."

Both Ben and Rey nodded, before Rey added:

"This war is far from over, even without a Supreme Leader."

At this moment, BB-8 came rolling in, pausing at the presence of Ben, before muttering in his usual chorus of beeps.

"I know, BB-8," Rey responded. "I know."

Seeing the blank looks Ben shot from the droid to Rey, and back again, she explained.

"He still doesn't like you."

"That's understandable," Ben nodded.

* * *

As Ben entered the cockpit, the looks he received from the pilot, the traitor and the mechanic, were a mix of resentment, anger and severe apprehension, mostly from the two men.

They were approaching to land on this uninhabited planet, the name of which was unimportant, as they were only stopping her temporarily. It was a red planet, somewhat small, and covered with volcanoes, some of which happened to be actively erupting at present.

"Of all planets we could have chosen, we chose this one," Finn spoke in his usual tone of disbelief. "Why would they have even built a base, let alone lived on a volcanically active planet?"

"It only became volcanically active twenty years ago," Leia answered.

Finn just scowled at the response, and returned to the controls, narrowing his eyes in Ben's direction in the process. Poe just seemed to ignore his presence altogether.

Rey gave Ben's hand quick squeeze, as she stepped in between Leia and Ben. As she passed Chewie, who was helping Rose repair a side panel, she gave him a pat on the shoulder, which caused him to nod in her direction. He too chose to ignore Ben's presence, breaking it only to shoot a glare at him. It would take more time for his anger and resentment to begin to relieve.

As Rey reached the two pilots, she placed a hand on both of their shoulders, causing them to look up at her, simultaneously releasing sighs of suppressed anger.

"I know you don't understand," She spoke calmly, causing Poe to look away, but Finn to remain watching her, as her gaze flitted between the two of them. "But I care about him."

"You're right we don't understand!" Poe shouted, rising from his chair and shrugging off her hand that was on his shoulder. "How can you care about that monster?!"

He pointed towards the direction of Ben, but he was several steps closer, ready to protect Rey from the pilot's outburst should he attempt to harm her. Poe looked taken aback at this, causing him to flinch and lower his arms, along with his voice.

"I just don't understand," His sadness becoming evident through both his voice and fallen facial expression. "He is the reason so many of us are dead, the reason why so many of my friends are dead."

"Poe..." Rey started, only to fall silent at the sharp shake of Poe's head, before he sat back down in the pilot chair, signifying that their conversation was over.

Rey took one look at Ben, offering him a small smile to reassure him that she was okay, before he stepped back, settling next to his mother. As Rey turned towards Finn, his face was blank, but he patted her hand on his shoulder, before offering her a small smile.

"I don't understand, but I see the way he looks at you, the way he...held you," He nodded, before returning his gaze to the controls in front of him, as they became close enough to land. "He's different now. It has to mean something."

Rey nodded, before returning to stand next to Ben, shooting Rose a smile, which she returned equally.

"You didn't have to come and protect me, you know." Rey whispered in Ben's ear, the sudden warmth of her breath causing him to suppress a small shiver. "He wouldn't hurt me."

"I don't like him," He whispered back, his arm snaking around her waist to pull her closer to him, causing her to smile, only to turn a bright shade of red when she saw Rose looking at them, with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.


	11. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

The three, old starships carrying the rebels landed on the volcanic planet, avoiding as many lava streams as they could. There was a light, smoky fog that had settled upon the planet, but thankfully no molten rock or debris fell from the sky.

"The latest eruption must be near its end," Ben added, only to be met with nods and a chorus of agreements. The rebels were unsettled by his presence, but were nonetheless thankful that he hadn't decided to kill them, despite the apprehensive glances shot to his lightsaber at his hip, and then to his face.

After twenty minutes of searching the abandoned base on the planet, which turned out to be a rebel base, they had salvage what supplies they could, proceeding to search the sparse environment of the planet for any food or wildlife they could use. However, due to the frequent eruptions and lava streams, there was little to be found.

Approaching the starships they had arrived on, with the intention of returning to space, Ben froze. At his sudden pause, the rebels turned to him. They had they been explicitly observant of him, and he did not blame them.

"Ben, what is it?" Rey asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"They're here."

"Wha-" Rey started to question, only to be cut off by the sounds of incoming fighter ships, along with three transporter ships.

"Take cover!" Ben shouted, and despite being the enemy just hours before, the rebels complied. If the fighter and transporter ships were here, more would be waiting for them in the space around the planet.

As soon as majority of the First Order ships landed, the rebels looked up to see a dark figure approaching the centre of the area, between the rebels and their three starships. He paused as soon as reached the centre.

The fog surrounding the planet, made it appear as though it was nearing night time, but not entirely there yet. The lava streams nearby, casting a soft, orange-red glow on the surroundings.

As Ben focused on the figure, he recognised the helmet immediately.

"It's a Knight of Ren," He spoke to the rebels near to him, along with Rey, Finn and Poe. Despite having been one of them just hours before this occurrence, their differences had been put aside, for he was helping them and their priority was only to survive, and worry about the rest after.

As the figure took off his helmet, Ben recognised him immediately.

 _James Ren._

They had never been friends at Skywalker's temple, never even spoken before that night of murder, destruction and betrayal. Ben flinched slightly, as he remembered that it had been because Rey had been taken away from him, even though he did not even know it back then.

"You have betrayed us, Kylo!" James Ren shouted in to the air, a look of madness on his face. "We thought you were our brother!"

Behind the Knight of Ren, the transporter ship opened, revealing a small army of stormtroopers, followed by the inhabitants of the fighter ships, the other four Knights of Ren.

As they stopped to stand behind him, James began pacing, the madness of his darkness making itself known. With Kylo as Master, he had been kept under control, but having assumed control, upon Kylo's transition back to being Ben, it was erupting in rugged amounts.

The rebels remained taking cover, behind the rocks and few trees of the planet, which only served to anger the newly, self-appointed Supreme Leader even more. He stopped pacing, turning sideways to face the general direction of the hiding rebels.

"The war is here, ladies and gentlem-" His proclamation was cut off by blaster fire from behind him.

As the Supreme Leader turned to face the interruption, the rebels rose slightly, including Ben, to witness. In midday air, floated a pair of blaster shots, which were aimed directly for James Ren. However, now they hovered, held in the air by the force, which originated from James. As the rebels followed the pathway of origination of the shot, they saw that Chewbacca now stood in the doorway of the Falcon, a blaster in hand.

"Well, well, well," James Ren spoke. "Let the war begin!"

As he went to push the blaster shot back in the direction of its origin, he found that he couldn't. As he stood there, embarrassment becoming evident, he could not use the force over the blaster fire that still hovered where it had been.

Turning around, he saw Ben, hand outstretched.

"Aw, if it isn't little Benny boy."

Ben just stood there, ignoring him, while rebels looked up at him or peered over the covers. From the confused looks on their faces, it was obvious that they had not expected him to actually stand up and protect one of their own.

"What are you going to do?" James Ren continued. "Kill me?"

"You forget that I am far stronger with the force than you are."

James Ren just laughed, his disbelief at the statement evident, before Ben continued.

"You laugh despite the fact that I was appointed the master of you and the other knights, yet you appointed yourself in the seconds, which I left you."

James Ren stopped laughing immediately, glaring severely at Ben.

Using the force, Ben brought the blaster fire he was still controlling forward slightly, which James Ren sensed immediately.

"You going to kill me?" James Ren asked in disbelief, yet again. "Because I think you forget that I can also use to force."

"Oh, I didn't forget." Ben quipped, smugly. "Do you remember, Rey?"

She rose to a stand at the sound of her name, causing James Ren to frown. She recognised him from the temple, he had always seemed somewhat mentally unstable.

"We thought you were dead."

"Sorry to disappoint," Rey replied, sarcastically, as she took control of the blaster shot, from Ben. Hovering it in front of her, she looked up at James Ren, who still looked at her in disbelief. Remembering her childhood, and subsequently the full extent of her training, allowed her to exhibit even more strength with the force than she already possessed.

Twirling the blaster shot in the air above her hand, Rey spoke again.

"By the way," She said rather smugly. "I'm the distraction."

She released the blaster fire in the direction of a tall, nearby tree, cutting it in half.

As it fell to the ground, it gave the rebels a few seconds to retreat and regroup, as the now angrier Supreme Leader ordered the Knights of Ren, and the stormtroopers, to advance.

Over the next forty minutes, the battle ensued, blaster fire being shot from both directions, while the Knights of Ren swiped their lightsabers at the rebels, with only Ben and Rey to defend them from it. Much like on Starkiller base, they fought flawlessly, occasionally back-to-back.

As two of the Knights of Ren reduced Ben to his knees, using the force to hold him down, along with physical force, they had only just managed it.

"You are no longer our brother," one of them hissed, holding his lightsaber to Ben's face. "How about we add to that scar of you-"

As Ben looked back up, he saw the decapitated body of the Knight of Ren fall backwards, with Rey standing over him, blue lightsaber shining brightly in her hand. The furious look on her face, in conjunction with her power in this moment, increased Ben's attraction towards her.

 _Beautiful_ , he thought before returning to the present.

The other two knights were left in shock at her strength, giving Ben the chance to elbow the one on his left in the gut, causing him to double over, followed by a punch to the face of the one to his right. As he looked up, Rey threw his lightsaber back to him, from where it had fallen to the ground, before turning to fight the stormtroopers surrounding them.

In their shocked states, Ben decapitated the two Knights in one long, straight stroke of his lightsaber. Before returning to fight more stormtroopers.

After killing several more, Ben saw James Ren waiting for him across the valley, by a lava stream. Advancing, Ben immediately attempted a blow, which was blocked by his opponents lightsaber. Pressing their lightsabers together in between their bodies, as they tried to force the other back. The crackle of the two lightsabers being forced together, and the red glow that coated them, was all their senses could focus on, other than each other's actions.

"Why don't we add another scar to that pretty face?" James Ren spoke sinisterly.

"Why don't you try it?" Ben spat back.

Pushing James Ren backwards, he fell on to his back, rolling just in time to miss the lightsaber that hit the ground instead, leaving a burn in the earth. As his opponent attempted to rise to his feet, Ben swiped his lightsaber to the left, diagonally upwards, catching his opponents arm.

James Ren screamed out in pain, as his severed arm fell to the ground, his head tilting forwards and his eyes filling with intense rage.

"I'm going to kill your little girlfriend, and then I'm going to kill you."

"You always have been mad," Ben responded, before kicking him in the chest, forcing him to fall backwards in to the lava stream.

 _The shortest reigning Supreme Leader has fallen_ , Ben thought. _What a shame_.

Ben looked over the valley for his eyes to find Rey, spotting her just in time.

As a Knight of Ren knocked her lightsaber out of her hand and lifted his own above his head, Rey waited for the blow, but it never came. She looked across the valley to where Ben stood, his hand outstretched, stopping the blow, giving Rey time to retrieve her own lightsaber. Placing it at the centre of the knight's chest, she re-activated it, ending his life.

After several more minutes of battle, Ben and Rey fighting within close proximity: majority of the stormtroopers had been killed, with a few rebel losses.

They managed to find themselves back-to-back again, fighting seamlessly.

"I love you, Rey!" Ben shouted suddenly.

"This really isn't the time, Ben!" She shouted from behind him, her disbelief and shock evident in her voice.

"I lost you once, and I didn't tell you." He shouted. "I'm not losing you again."

After a few more moments of silence, as they fought off the remaining stormtroopers.

"I love you too, you idiot!" She shouted back, and despite the insult at the end, Ben grinned.

"We need to get out of here!" Poe shouted to Rey, coming up next to them.

"Shoot that tree!" Ben shouted at Poe. Despite his reluctance to take orders from him, Poe complied, understanding his plan.

The tall tree fell in front of, and on a few, a mass of stormtroopers, giving them chance to run to their starships, killing the few stormtroopers in their path, giving the other rebels the same idea.

Once they all reached the starships, they managed to leave the surface of the planet, as the stormtroopers advanced upon the ships, shooting at them.

As they left the atmosphere, they were met with the First Order ship that awaited them.

"Shoot the bridge!" Ben shouted, as he reached the cockpit, pulling Rey behind him, their hands clasped together.

"I don't take orders from you!" Poe shouted back, Leia standing behind him.

"Their Supreme Leader is dead, shoot the bridge," Ben replied. "They won't be able to shoot us or follow us at lightspeed, without the equipment or the people."

"We are never going to win this," Finn said with disbelief.

"They don't have a Supreme Leader, no Knights of Ren," Ben reassured. "Their benefactors had already begun to lose faith, and they definitely will now."

Reassurance from the ex-Supreme Leader to the traitor shocked the entire people within the proximity, before they snapped back to reality.

Chewbacca growled to Poe that it was their only option, while BB-8 ensured him that it was the best plan.

Sighing, Poe locked on their weapons to the bridge, causing the other two starships to do the same at his order.

"Fire!" Poe ordered.

In a flurry of green blaster fire, the bridge was reduced to floating debris and bodies in space, before the three starships promptly turned around, before flying away, at lightspeed.


	12. Epilogue

**Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars!**

* * *

It had now been five years since that particular battle. The battle where Kylo Ren had become Ben Solo, abandoning the First Order and leaving it crumbling without a Supreme Leader, or the Knights of Ren. Where they had been hiding had previously been inhabited by the Knights of Ren, a planet called, Hawaviina.

Althought the First Order had been left crumbling, it had not fallen. The tables had turned, circumstances similar to that of the battle of Crait. The First Order were left with few allies, and few investors, as the rebels had been.

For the past half a year, the rebels had been inhabiting Hawaviina. Being the planet previously occupied by the Knights of Ren, the First Order (or Second Order as the rebels liked to call them now), had not thought to search it. The First Order did not have the knowledge to even think of the planet in the first place. The only people who knew of it were Snoke, Hux and Ben, two of which were dead at Ben's hands.

Shortly after the near fall of the First Order, the rebels had put Ben on trial, something he agreed with himself. However, due to his actions in the battle, and his immense contribution, which gave the rebels the upper hand, and saved lives, he was somewhat forgiven. His mother, Leia, had a few persuading words with everyone, he was her son after all.

* * *

Five years later, and he still got wary looks, but he had grown on a few people.

Finn and Rose were still going strong, Finn being a pilot and Rose being a mechanic. They hadn't married, but Ben could tell that Finn was thinking about it.

Poe still deeply disliked him, along with BB-8, but instead of verbal insults, it had now become huff and a gaze shift once they noticed his presence. Ben didn't mind though, he had never liked the pilot in the first place, but he would be civil.

Chewbacca had been a very awkward, guilt ridden conversation, in which Ben had ended up with a bruised jaw, followed by the tightest, fluffiest hug he had ever received. Chewbacca would never truly forgive him, but Ben had saved his life, and the life of his friends. They would never be able to have the same relationship that they had when Ben was a child, but it was better than being punched everytime he was seen by the walking teddy bear.

His mother, as optimistic and persuasive as she was, managed to forgive him as best as she was able. As mothers always would, they would forgive their children for anything, as long as they proved themselves to have seen it was wrong and feel the guilt their actions had caused. She had lost so much because of him, but the fact that she had him back warmed her heart.

 _A mother's love never dies_ , she had said and he believed her.

Unfortunately, a year ago his mother had passed away, peaceful in her sleep. He had been grateful that she had not suffered in her final moments, but he still felt the guilt that had risen. He had taken so much away from her, and brought her life to focus on war. However, Rey had reassured him, as he mourned, that she was now with Han and Luke, her husband and her brother. She would not be alone, she would be with people she loved, but she would watch over them.

Both himself and Rey had begun to lead the rebellion, but instead of the duo ruling, they formed a group to lead: Finn, Rose, Poe, Chewbacca and themselves. The rebels found this diplomacy to be much more agreeable.

As he walked back in to the cave, he approached the wall where the Knights of Ren had once stood awaiting his arrival. In its place, a somewhat narrow bunk. Laying on it was his wife, Rey.

"You took your time," she spoke, a soft smile on her face, but her gaze not focused on him.

He just smiled at her, instead of answering. More often than not, she released her hair entirely from the confines of the buns he had given her, all those years ago. She lay in the bed, soft hair cascading over her shoulders. It had grown much longer since the battle of Crait, covering her chest now.

As his eyes drifted over his wife, whom he had married three years ago, his mother being the officiant, his gaze shifted to settle on one of the reasons they had settled on this planet.

"Hello, Ethan," He whispered, as he sat down on the edge of the bed beside them. The baby in her arms, their son, had been born a few days ago. They had settled on Hawaviina as Rey reached the heavier stages of pregnancy. Ben had found himself wishing that his mother could have been her, could have met her grandchildren.

"It's feeding time again," Rey spoke softly, exhaustion evident in her eyes. Ben returned the soft smile on her face, before rising from the bed.

"And where do you think you're going?" Rey asked, amusement evident in her voice, as she began to feed Ethan.

"Can't leave Kiara out, now can we?" He replied, walking to the cot to pick up Ethan's twin sister, their daughter.

After a few moments, they both settled on the bed, feeding their twins, they felt a shift in the force.

Looking up simultanouesly, Ben and Rey were met with a force ghost, his mother. Leia stood before them, surrounding by soft glow.

"They're beautiful," She whispered, smiling at the twins before looking up to their parents. "You will be brilliant parents."

"Thank you, mother." Ben replied, tears welling up in his eyes, before he looked back down to Kiara in his arms.

When he looked back up his mother was gone, but he could still feel her.

 _She'll never truly be gone_ , a part of him whispered to himself.

Although the war was not over, they had the upper hand, they were winning. But in this moment, none of that mattered.

Leaning over to capture the lips of his wife with his own- Ben had never felt so loved.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! I worked really hard on this story, and I am so proud at how it turned out, so please review!**

 **I love to hear what you think.**


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